New Delhi has been accused by its neighbor of opening the dam on a shared river, leading to devastating floods
The Indian government has denied allegations that it was responsible for devastating floods in neighboring Bangladesh, which have affected millions of people.
Dhaka claims that the flooding was caused by a decision to open the Dumbur dam on the Gumti River in Tripura, a state that shares an 800km-long border with Bangladesh. The allegations were rejected by New Delhi on Thursday.
The flooding occurred weeks after former prime minister Sheikh Hasina was forced to resign amid political upheaval. He fled to India, and an interim government led by the Nobel Peace Prize winner Mohamed Yunus has been set up in Bangladesh.
Mohammad Nahid Islam, an adviser to the interim government, claimed on Thursday that India had opened a dam without any prior warning that would have given Bangladesh “scope to prepare.”
“India has displayed non-cooperation and an inhuman attitude by opening a dam all of a sudden,” Nahid said, as quoted by Protom Ato newspaper.
His remarks came after students from several universities staged protests over India’s role in the floods, demanding fair water-sharing agreements with New Delhi – a longstanding issue in the bilateral ties between the neighboring countries.
